Meeting the Minotaur

Across the water from Santorini, lies the island of Crete. A ferry brought us into the city of Heraklion, our base for the next week.

Since ancient times, Crete has been contested territory, changing hands often. Skipping the more recent history, we began our studies with ancient Crete, in the times of the Minoans. Boy started with the Greek myths of Crete, including the story of the Minotaur and the story of Daedalus and Icarus. This review of the labyrinth and Minotaur set us up for our visit to the Archeological Museum of Iraklio, where the majority of Minoan artifacts and wall paintings from Knossos are on display. We lost count of the number of bulls we saw in the collection, though the number of octopus and seashells was nearly as high.

A stroll through the market, a visit to the Medieval Venetian Fortress, the Koules, and a walk along the defensive sea wall rounded out our day. We ended with a fish dinner, overlooking the sea.

Tomorrow, we are off to the home of king Minos, the Palace of Knossos.